Bread For the Journey

In the past several months we have walked through
tough times with several of our close friends.
My first inclination on hearing difficult news is to ask "Why Lord?"  

"Why does [this friend] have to go through this terrible situation?"  
"[These friends] have trusted you all along and yet still they face one hard thing after another. Why Lord?"  

"Why do [these friends] have to go through this loss, this crisis?"

At a friend's daughter's funeral recently the pastor reminded us that the question is 
not "Why?" but "Who?"  

"Who can we call on in times of trouble?" 

"Who loves us more than we can imagine?"

 "Who knows where we are right now and what we are feeling?"  

"Who is walking with us all along the way?"

The answer to all of these questions is "GOD!" 
He alone can be trusted, He alone is in control. 

Without Him there are no answers to the hard questions; 

no reasons for difficult times and worst of all, 

no hope.

In my devotions over the past few weeks, the theme of HOPE reappeared time and again.

Romans 15:4

For whatever things were written before were written for our learning that we through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures might have hope.(NIV)

Hebrew 6:19

We have this hope as an anchor of the soul, both firm and secure.(NIV)

Romans 15:13

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.(NIV)

In difficult times we, as believers in God, have this hope through Christ's sacrifice and 

HOPE, as an anchor of the soul, is both sure and steadfast.(NKJV)